Main South CDC awarded $30K to enhance neighborhood art scene
Photo | Timothy Doyle
Main South Community Development Corp. has received $30,000 through MassDevelopment's Transformative Development Initiative Creative Catalyst Grant program
Main South Community Development Corp. has received a $30,000 grant from Boston-based quasi-public finance agency MassDevelopment to support the Worcester nonprofit’s efforts to infuse art into the area between the city’s downtown and Webster Square districts.
Main South CDC, an organization working to promote equitable economic development in the Worcester neighborhood, will use the funds to hire local artists to paint crosswalks and install curb extensions for murals. The efforts are meant to enhance pedestrian safety and amalgamate new affordable lease-to-own commercial storefronts with the neighborhood’s culture, according to a Thursday press release from MassDevelopment. The storefronts are being constructed at 807-815 Main St.
In addition, the Main South CDC will use its funding to erect a blues-themed sculpture to celebrate the area’s music scene and honor Barbara Haller, a former city councilor who championed the Main South community. Haller died in 2022.
The award is provided through MassDevelopment’s Transformative Development Initiative Creative Catalyst Grant program. The initiative’s latest round of funding saw 11 organizations throughout 10 Gateway Cities receive a total of $915,000 in funding.
The TDI Creative Catalyst Grant program is funded by Boston-based nonprofit the Barr Foundation, which has supplied MassDevelopment with $8 million since 2019 for its arts-based programming for Gateway Cities.
MassDevelopment’s overarching Transformative Development Initiative has awarded a total of $38 million since it was introduced in 2015 with its Creative Catalyst Grant program having awarded $2.87 million through 49 grants in its first five rounds of funding.
“The arts are essential to fostering connection and shared purpose in vibrant, thriving communities,” Giles Li, senior program officer of arts and creativity at the Barr Foundation, said in the release. “Creative Catalyst projects demonstrate the power of the arts to bring diverse people together, build a sense of belonging, and create conditions for lasting economic growth.”
Mica Kanner-Mascolo is a staff writer at Worcester Business Journal, who primarily covers the healthcare and diversity, equity, and inclusion industries.
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